Smalltalk best practice patterns

What Hacker News says

1. KerrickFeb 2026
   > However, it is important to ask if you want to stop investing in your own skills because of a speculative prediction made by an AI researcher or tech CEO.

   I don't think these are exclusive. Almost a year ago, I wrote a blog post about this [0]. I spent the time since then both learning better software design and learning to vibe code. I've worked through Domain-Driven Design Distilled, Domain-Driven Design, Implementing Domain-Driven Design, Design Patterns, The Art of Agile Software Development, 2nd Edition, Clean Architecture, Smalltalk Best Practice Patterns, and Tidy First?. I'm a far better software engineer than I was in 2024. I've also vibe coded [1] a whole lot of software [2], some good and some bad [3].

   You can choose to grow in both areas.

   [0]: https://kerrick.blog/articles/2025/kerricks-wager/

   [1]: As defined in Vibe Coding: Building Production-Grade Software With GenAI, Chat, Agents, and Beyond by Gene Kim and Steve Yegge, wherein you still take responsibility for the code you deliver.

   [2]: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46702093

   [3]: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46719500

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2. KerrickNov 2025
   I am indeed learning, working to close those gaps.

   For automated testing, I'm in the middle of reading Developer Testing by Alexander Tarlinder, with xUnit Test Patterns by Gerard Meszaros coming close behind. I'm also working through Test-Driven Development: By Example with my wife as we have time.

   For SQL, I read Grokking Relational Database Design by Qiang Hao last winter, and I started SQL Queries for Mere Mortals by John Viescas this week. Sadly, my flub with "left inner join" was not a joke.

   For OOP, I've been on a whirlwind tour: OOA&D With Applications by Booch et al., Object Thinking by David West, POODR and 99 Bottles of OOP by Sandi Metz, Domain-Driven Design by Eric Evans, IDDD and DDDD by Vaughn Vernon, Design Patterns in Ruby by Russ Olsen, Clean Architecture by Robert C. Martin, and Smalltalk Best Practice Patterns by Kent Beck. Still on the docket are Design Patterns by the Gang of Four, PoEAA by Martin Fowler, Smalltalk, Objects, and Design by Chamond Liu, and Object Design by Rebecca Wirfs-Brock.

   > confessing that you don't know something and gleefully stopping there is not much better [...] we shouldn't let shamelessness about what we don't know limit us either

   I promise you, this was not gleeful and this was not shameless. Shame and fear affected me for months on these issues. And I'm not stopping there... From the end of the article: "I’m going to continue to work on skill building, but now I feel free to write about it. If [...] you’d like to help me fill [my knowledge gaps], [...]"

   > if you want to write a blog about a topic, then part of the requirements here is that you do hold yourself to a high standard

   A high standard of writing, maybe. But plenty of great stories come from those who are striving for a high standard, not just those already in the upper echelon. It's what makes this place different from academic journals.

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3. inopinatusJun 2021
   Bad-faith trolls demanding “why did you downvote me” get at most list of their sins and references to improve. Read it, don’t read it, up to you, but I don’t spoonfeed sealions. Reading books is the best inoculation against being suckered by Barnum statements like “no one really agrees on what <concept> is” or “no-one says <thing readily found in books>”.

   Further reading: Refactoring (Fowler), Smalltalk Best Practice Patterns (Beck).

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4. galaxyLogicJun 2019
   "Smalltalk Best Practice Patterns" was a good book
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5. njepaMar 2019
   There is about five to ten books that will be commonly recommended to be a better programmer. Code complete, Smalltalk best practice patterns, clean code etc. You can find lists online. Read a few that seem interesting and at least you will have common ground with many other programmers.
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6. gnaritasJul 2017
   Smalltalk Best Practice Patterns by Kent Beck. Refactoring by Martin Fowler. Design Patterns by the Gang of Four. Domain Driven Design by Eric Evans.
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